Thursday, February 23, 2006

UK court tries ex-Arsenal security chief, Adeniran, over forgery
From Tunde Oyedoyin, London

A NIGERIAN born former security manager of Arsenal Football Club Stadium was yesterday charged in a United Kingdom (UK) court for alleged forgery.

advertisement

The Southwark Crown Court heard yesterday afternoon, how the 39 -year old illegal immigrant was arrested in a surveillance operation by the Metropolitan Police's special squad, Operation Maxim, at his Hackney home, East London, in August 2005.

Adeniran, who had already pleaded guilty to running an illegal immigration racket, was found with more than 100 fake Nigerian and South African passports when his house was raided last summer.

According to the Crown Prosecution Service, (CPS) lawyer Wayne Cransten -Morris, Adeniran, who had four different identities, was trapped when an undercover Police Officer, faking to be a DHL courier driver, delivered a parcel-sent from a Lagos address to the defendant's East London flat last August.

The trial judge Higgins, heard how Adeniran promised to return to London to take delivery of his DHL parcel when the undercover officer called his mobile phone to inform him that he had a package.

The officer, simply identified as "Chris," called Adeniran, a.k.a Solomon David, among others, on August 11, 2005, and Adeniran, who was away from London at the time, promised to get back to his house the next morning to take delivery of his parcel.

After making what a detective termed "controlled delivery," to Adeniran on August 12, 2005 morning, officers from Operation Maxim returned later in the day to arrest him.

Adeniran, who in his guilty plea had said he was a "post box" in the racket, was also found in possession of instruments associated with making forged documents during the police swoop last August. Although he is not expected to change his plea when the case is summed up today, both the CPS and the Police do not agree that he was simply a "post box" in the racket.

Adeniran's wife, Remi, also an illegal immigrant, is indicted in the case, but the judge has placed a reporting restriction order on her involvement, in order not to prejudice her pending trial.